Soaking seeds?

[LovinLife]

I haven't planted any seeds yet... I know, shame, shame. I need to buy a bag of dirt and haven't made it to the store yet. I'm wondering if I start soaking my seeds will this give them a jump start. Should I just soak them in water (i have well water) or add something to the water?

 

[patandchickens]

IMO the only things worth soaking are annoyingly-slow germinators (parsley for instance!) or things you're going to plant into marginally-too-cold-and-wet ground and would rather they take off *growing* right away rather than sitting long enough to be likely to rot (for instance beans planted on the early side of when you oughta plant 'em).

Anything else -- the "tinies" and seeds that germinate fairly fast on their own and are being planted under good conditions -- I think soaking just creates more problems and aggravation than is worth.

(e.t.a. -- if you ARE going to soak, do it in plain water, tepid for most seeds or starting out quite warm for parsley, and do not soak for very long -- maybe 4-6 hrs for average-sized beans, overnite for parsley -- otherwise it can damage or kill the seed.)

JME, good luck, have fun,

Pat

 

[Marianne]

Ditto. The only seeds I soak are peas. But I plant a very simple garden with just the things that we eat, nothing fancy.

Hey, pat yourself on the back - you're trying something new and it's addicting!

 

[i_am2bz]

I'm no expert gardener by any stretch, but I have been told soaking overnight helps germination, especially maters & peppers. My pole bean seed packet also suggests it.

 

[Marianne]

Oh, maybe so. It's been years since I planted pole beans, and since the packet suggests it.. well, why not? Sure would speed things up.
I always buy tomato plants instead of starting from seed.

 

[patandchickens]

I'm not sure I've ever had less than 90-100% germination from tomatoes, just planted normally no soaking.

Peppers can be more unreliable but for me it's usually a matter of insufficient bottom heat (started indoors) and/or some crucial "oops" in watering before they sprout. If I am really attentive, I usually figure on close to 3/4 of pepper seeds germinating, for most varieties anyhow (that's discarding obviously-not-right-looking seeds)

Yeah, peas are the other thing I soak. Also there is some kind of annual flower I used to soak, like 15-20 years ago, but I don't remember anymore at all. Morning glory maybe? Who knows. I gave up on most annuals long ago

Pat

 

[Shiloh Acres]

As I remember I THINK it's morning glories that have to be soaked AND nicked.

I might've soaked some beans or peas somewhere along the way, but I think it's mostly only morning glories I soaked.

 

[kcsunshine]

I've never understood why morning glories need to be soaked. They grow on everything around here - you can't kill them. Maybe the rain "soaks" them - but don't know about the nicking.

 

[freemotion]

I could not get morning glories to grow until I learned about nicking and soaking them. Now they reseed and I weed them out! But they have weeks to soak in the ground, that is likely the difference.

 

[BeccaOH]

Okra is the only seed I've ever really soaked. They are hard little things and the soaking does seem to help things get going.